An early record-breaker

Spitzer telescope reveals young galaxy with a surprising rate of star formation

Talk about a baby boom. Using several telescopes ranging from radio to the infrared, astronomers have discovered that a remote galaxy, 12.3 billion light-years away, is churning out 1,000 to 4,000 newborn stars a year.

STAR-FORMING CHAMP Green and blue splotches denote a galaxy that, forming stars at the furious rate of 1,000 to 4,000 a year, sets the record for the early universe.